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This is my garden in mid- to late October (zone 5). The tall tree in back is bald cypress (Taxodium distichum), a deciduous conifer that turns lovely orange and copper. In the front is amsonia gone yellow and aromatic aster (aster oblongifolius) still in bloom. To the left is an 'Autum Joy' sedum with burnt-red seed heads. When summer blooms are a distant memory, this diverse color palette nearly trumps that of mid-July.

How to use it. In this photo aromatic aster is a late-season accent among perennials that are already bare and ugly. It can really pick up the slack when everything else has lost its leaves. You could also use it as a shrub border, or as a front-of-the-border plant in a more formal design.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November. A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

Late-fall blooms, like aromatic aster, can provide another element of texture. Notice how the short, shrubby asters lead up to the green Baptisia australis, then up to a young bald cypress (Taxodium distichum), and how the bloom and leaf textures are all different.

How long into fall that you can plant obviously varies by location: In the northern regions or at higher elevations, you’ll want to be digging in August and September, whereas toward the coasts and the southern regions you might be able to go into December (Christmas presents!). Over the years I’ve come to do most of my planting and dividing in fall, so that when spring comes, all I have to do is go outside and enjoy the fruits of my autumn labor. The plants will thank you with more robust root systems and hopefully a show worth savoring from the nearest garden bench.More:Make This Fall’s Garden the Best EverMore Houzz guides to fall gardening

Aromatic Aster(Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)Native from the northern to southern Plains, North Dakota to Wisconsin and south to Arkansas and TexasThis is one of the last, if not the last, asters to bloom each fall — sometimes into early November. Aromatic aster forms a small, shrubby shape about 12 to 18 inches tall and 2 to 3 feet in diameter. Its two best attributes? High drought tolerance, and it’s a superb final pitstop for migrating and overwintering insects. Plus, its bluish-purple blooms laugh at frosts — even a few freezes don’t seem to phase it. Perfect in drifts, as specimens or used in place of small shrubs. I’ve also seen many a bird and rabbit hiding inside aromatic aster on a snowy winter’s day. It will thrive in full sun, in rocky to gravelly soil to well-drained clay. Plant it and forget it — seriously.See how to grow aromatic asterMore: Browse plants native to your region

Aromatic Aster
(Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)
Native from the northern to southern Plains, North Dakota to Wisconsin and south to Arkansas and Texas
This is one of the last, if not the last, asters to bloom each fall — sometimes into early November. Aromatic aster forms a small, shrubby shape about 12 to 18 inches tall and 2 to 3 feet in diameter. Its two best attributes? High drought tolerance, and it’s a superb final pitstop for migrating and overwintering insects. Plus, its bluish-purple blooms laugh at frosts — even a few freezes don’t seem to phase it.
Perfect in drifts, as specimens or used in place of small shrubs. I’ve also seen many a bird and rabbit hiding inside aromatic aster on a snowy winter’s day. It will thrive in full sun, in rocky to gravelly soil to well-drained clay. Plant it and forget it — seriously.

Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens
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Aromatic Aster
(Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)
Native from the northern to southern Plains, North Dakota to Wisconsin and south to Arkansas and Texas
This is one of the last, if not the last, asters to bloom each fall — sometimes into early November. Aromatic aster forms a small, shrubby shape about 12 to 18 inches tall and 2 to 3 feet in diameter. Its two best attributes? High drought tolerance, and it’s a superb final pitstop for migrating and overwintering insects. Plus, its bluish-purple blooms laugh at frosts — even a few freezes don’t seem to phase it.
Perfect in drifts, as specimens or used in place of small shrubs. I’ve also seen many a bird and rabbit hiding inside aromatic aster on a snowy winter’s day. It will thrive in full sun, in rocky to gravelly soil to well-drained clay. Plant it and forget it — seriously.

Aromatic Aster
(Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)
Native from the northern to southern Plains, North Dakota to Wisconsin and south to Arkansas and Texas
This is one of the last, if not the last, asters to bloom each fall — sometimes into early November. Aromatic aster forms a small, shrubby shape about 12 to 18 inches tall and 2 to 3 feet in diameter. Its two best attributes? High drought tolerance, and it’s a superb final pitstop for migrating and overwintering insects. Plus, its bluish-purple blooms laugh at frosts — even a few freezes don’t seem to phase it.
Perfect in drifts, as specimens or used in place of small shrubs. I’ve also seen many a bird and rabbit hiding inside aromatic aster on a snowy winter’s day. It will thrive in full sun, in rocky to gravelly soil to well-drained clay. Plant it and forget it — seriously.

Aromatic Aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) - not sure if native to MD. One of last asters to bloom in fall - can go to early Nov., freeze tolerant. Thrives in full sun, in rocky to gravelly soil to well-drained clay. Small, shrubby shape about 12 to 18 in. tall and 2 to 3 ft. wide.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.

low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.

See those low, blue-flowering mounds? They're aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) — native from the Rockies to most of the East Coast. This perennial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still blooming into early November.
A lover of sun to partial sun and dry soil, it will bring in the last of the pollinating insects every autumn. Reaching no more than 2 feet tall and about 3 to 4 feet wide after a few years, this aster is a front-of-the-border showstopper that's truly low maintenance.

for back rock garden -- blue-flow­er­ing mounds, aro­matic na­tive from the Rock­ies to most of the East Coast. This peren­nial shrugs off many hard freezes with gusto while still bloom­ing into early No­vem­ber.